Locomotive for light railways



F. H. DUTTON. LOCOMQTIVE FOR LIGHT RAILWAYS APPLICATION FILED AUG.22, 192i. L416,625. Patented May1fi,1922.

4 SHEETS-SHEET l.

F. H. DUTTON. LOCOMOTIVE FOR LIGHT RAILWAYS.

APPUCA'HON HLED AUG,22. l92l. 1A16,625. Patented May 116, 11922..

4 SHEETSSHEET 2.

F. H. nunom.

LOCOMOTIVE FOR LIGHT RAILWAYS.

APPLICATION FILED AUGQZZ. 192 l.

Patented May 16, 1922.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

FRANK HENRY BUTTON, OF JOI-IANNESBURG, TRANSVAAL SOUTH AFRICA,

ASSIG'NOR TO ROADRAILS, LIMITED, OF LONDON, ENGLAND.

Application filed August 22, 1921.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I. FRANK HENRY Durmm a subject of the King of Great Britain and Ireland, residing 183 South African Railway Building, Johannesburg, Trans vaal, Union of South Africa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Locomotives for Light Railways, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has for its object to effect improvements in the existing light railway systems and more particularly concerns an improvement in the locomotive or driving arrangements used in connection therewith.

It is known to use a driving arrangement according to which the drive is derived from the road whilst the load is carried on the rails and in such arrangements it has hitherto been customary to have the driving wheels on the locomotive running on special roadways or prepared tracks, laterally of or iiiside the actual rails as has for instance been described in the specification of my United States Patent No. 1306051, granted June 10, 1919.

Now according to this invention instead of pivoting each bogie to the locomotive frame at one central point thereof, as hitherto, each bogie is connected with the locomotive frame laterally on both sides by selfsteering connections. The frame of the locomotive is made preferably in two sections which are pivoted hinged or articulated at any convenient point centrally'with the road or driving wheels preferably, however, as

far as possible below the axle thereof. The axle on which the driving or road wheels rotate has its trunnions journalled in bearings provided with lateral guide brackets and supporting a spring or like cushioning or shock absorbing device of which appropriate parts or extension on the main frame sections constitute a cooperative part.

The road driving wheels are driven preferably through a chain gear from a differ entially driven countershaft as in the patent above referred to. i

The accompanying drawings illustrate by way of'example a form of construction embodying-the invention.

Figure 1 is a side elevation and Figure 2 a plan view of a light railway vehicle having its frame mounted on two bogies, one in front (on the right) and one in rear of the driving wheels.

Specification of Letters Patent.

" LOCOMOTIVE FOR LIGHT RAIL-WAYS.

Patented May 16, 1922. Serial No. 494,181.

Figure 3 is a vertical cross section through the axle of the driving wheels.

Figure 4: a perspective view of the road or driving wheels and adjacent parts showmg particularly the hinging of the fore and aft members of the longitudinal frame bearers and the manner of suspending and cushionlng them on the road wheel axle.

F igure 5 is an end elevation. and

Figure 6 a perspective view of a bogie showing the self-steering connection of such bogie to the locomotive frame whilel Figure 7 shows in a plan view of a bogie, showing the action of the self-steering connection.

Figure 8 shows in a section along the road wheel axle a modification to illustrate how four driving wheels, two inside and two outside of the rail track, may be arranged on the said axle if desired.

In the construction shown the main frame of the vehicle consists of longitudinal side members or bearers each divided into two parts A, B and A, B respectively, each bearer extending fore and aft from the axle C of the road or driving wheels I) which as shown are centrally disposed and arranged to run inside between the rails of the track. The two bearers are arranged in an identical manner, that is to say the complementary sections of each bearer are connected one with the other on each side below the axle C by. means of a hinge pin E and are suspended by means of vertical arms A B which by preference are made integral with the corresponding bearer sections.

As shown these arms A B on each side form a strap suspension each arm rising from its bearer section and terminating in a hook, the hooks of the straps on each side facing each other and resting on a compression spring F which is supported on the corresponding axle end 0 by means of the axle bearing G on that side as shown clearly in Figure 4:. These bearings G are each provided with prong-shaped lugs 9 arranged laterally opposite each other and adapted to embrace and form a guide for the arms A and B so that a yielding connection is formed on each side between the axle C and the frame enabling the straps A and B to slide up and down between the guides y, when variations in the level of the road or obstacles are encountered and the axle C to assume its requisite position relative to the main frame.

The driving wheels D. preferably shod with solid rubber tyres. are loosely journalled on the axle C. They are provided with sprocket wheels D mounted on their hubs and driven by chains D from a countershaft H differently driven from the engine J by a chain J or like driving transmis sion; and appropriate differential gearing housed in the gear box fl being used to establish connection between the chain sprocket wheelsemployed for this purpose.

The longitudinal bearer sections A, B, and A. B respectively are each raised and rectangularly offset at their outer ends where they are supported by king pins on the respective bogie II by the interposition at each end of a self-steering mechanism of identical construction.

This mechanism as described in connection with the forward bogie (on. the, r ht hand side) comprises the following parts, shown more clearly in Figures 5, 6 and 7.

Rigidly secured to the under side and projecting downwardly from the bearer sections A and A respectively are king pins a, a each constituting a fulcrum for a bell. crank lever L, Z and L, Z respectively. These bell crank levers are mounted symmetrically on their pins so that normally the arms L and I4! pointing downwardly stand at right angles to the vehicle frame. The arms 'L, L by means of pinshaped extensions m, m engage slots 7c, arranged in alignment near the outer ends of the cross beam K and in line with the wheels ol'xthc bogie whilst the arms I, Z of the said bell crank levers are linked up by a connecting rod M. From the inspection of l igures .2 and 7, it will be seen that any deviation of the track from the straight -that is to say when the bogieof thelocomotiveframe deviates from parallel positions on a c1u've--will cause the cross beam K of the bogie to take up a position coinciding with the radius of that curvature. This results from the action of the cross beam K on the pins in. m of the bell crank arms L. L which are caused by the connecting rod M to co-operate and to swing out for an equal amount but on account of the symmetrical arrangement in opposite directions thus effectively steering the bogie without disturbing the distribution of the load on the wheels on either side of the bogie.

Figure 8 illustrates by way of example a modification in which use is made of four driving wheels all arranged on one and the same axle C two to run inside and two outside the rail track. These four wheels may be driven separately from the same countershaft H or they may be driven in pairs and if desired the outer wheels and the inner Wheels may be arranged on different axles.

The longitudinal bearer sections B B are supported on the rear bogie by me-ans of the same arrangement as already stated.

'With the aid of an arrangement as above described the stability of the vehicle is ensured by eliminating the centrally pivoted bogie usually constructed and providing in its place a bogie whereby complete support for the frame is obtained in line with the hearings or wheels of the bogie. The articulation referred to ensures that the weight of the locomotive is distributed as desired either upon the driving wheels or upon the rail bogies and further ensures when running over uneven ground that the load carried by each respective axle, whether bogie or driving wheels. remains the same.

It is obvious that with an arrangement on the above principle, and where in fact a bogie is used fore and aft, thelocomotive would be readily reversible. It will be seen that in other respects also the invention admits of numerous constructional modifications by those' skilled in the art without departing from the main spirit thereof, and therefore should not be deemed to be strictly limited to the specific arrangement or to the configuration of their details hereinbefore particularly described.

1. In a light railway vehicle in combination, a bogie, a frame supported on said bogie and self steering connections between the said frame and said bogie substantially as set forth.

2. In a light railway vehicle in combination. a bog'io, a frame supported at one end on said bogic, a bogie supporting theoppon u S site end of said frame and self-steering connections between each bogie and the respective end of said frame substantially as set forth.

3. In a light railway vehicle in combina tion, a bogie, a pair of road driving wheels and a frame supported on the said bogieand hinged. centrally with the said road driving wheels substantially as set forth.

11 In a light railway vehicle in combination, a bogie, a pair of road driving wheels and a frame supported at one end on the said bogie and pivoted on hinge pins on either side cent-rally with and below the axle of the said road driving wheels substantially as set forth.

5. In a light railway vehicle in combination. a pair of road driving wheels running inside a rail track, a frame supported centrally on the said road driving wheels, at bogie supporting one end of the said frame and self-steering connections between the said bogie and said frame substantially as set forth.

6. In a light railway vehicle a pair of road driving wheels running inside a rail track. a frame hinged centrally with the said road driving wheels, a bogie at each end of said frame and self-steering connections between each bogie and the end of said frame, substantially as set forth.

7. In a light railway vehicle in combination, a pair of road driving wheels, a frame pivoted centrally with the said road driving wheels, and a cushioning device between said frame and said Wheels substantially as set forth.

8. In a light railway vehicle in combination,a pair of road driving wheels, a frame pivoted centrally with and below the axle of the said road driving wheels on each side thereof, a bogie supporting each end of said frame and connected thereto by self steering connections and a cushioning device between the said axle and the said frame on each side thereof substantially as set forth.

9. In a light railway vehicle in combination, a pair of road driving wheels, a frame composed of sections hinged together on pins centrally with and below the axle of said driving wheels, a cushioning device on each end of said axle and brackets rising from the hinged sections to form part of the cushioning device and guided by lugs on the latter, substantially as set forth.

10. In a light railway vehicle in combination, a bogie, a frame having its end supported on the said bogie, a lever connection laterally on each side between the said bogie and. said frame and. a link gear between the said lever connections, substain tially as and for the purpose set forth.

11. In a light railway vehicle in combination, a pair of road driving wheels, running inside a rail track, a frame centrally hinged with the said road driving wheels on each side thereof and a pair of road driving wheels on the same axle and running outside the rail track, substantially as set forth.

12. In a light railway vehicle in combina tion, a pair of road driving 'wheels running centrally within a rail track, a frame centrally hinged with and below the axle of said road driving wheels and spring cushioned thereon on each side, rectangularly raised ends on the frame each supported on a rail bogle and self-steering connections laterally between each end of said frame and its bogie, all substantially as described and shown.

In testimony whereof I ailix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

FRANK HENRY DUTTON Witnesses:

I. A. Moonm, L. C. WIMBLE. 

